Footswitch assemblies such as those used to provide a control input are often found with sophisticated pieces of medical equipment. Such footswitch assemblies give a medical professional the ability to use his/her hands when positioning and manipulating instruments while conducting a medical procedure on a patient. Such footswitch assemblies are used to control surgical parameters using small foot movements.
Typical footswitch assemblies have a base housing portion and a movable treadle pedal pivotably mounted to the base housing portion. In some footswitches, the base housing portion also includes side wings which are located on either side of the treadle pedal. On and off switches are located on the side wings. Within the base housing portion are typically located the mechanical support for the pivotable mounting of the movable treadable pedal and an array of electrical connections.
The physical inputs into a footswitch assembly by a healthcare professional, particularly a surgeon, are often used to regulate very critical parameters. If these delicate parameters are not properly regulated, disastrous consequences can result.
Users of footswitch assemblies typically become accustomed to the feel of certain footswitches and are able to repeatedly execute successful procedures quickly and efficiently because of the muscle memory associated with the use of footswitches having a generally uniform design. Unfortunately, different sophisticated medical equipment systems use different styles and different types of footswitches. Because of the size, the complexity, the variety and the cost of footswitches, those using footswitches on a regular basis do not have their own customized universal footswitch which can be transported and used to operate a variety of different types of equipment.
Further complicating the problem of the use of footswitches is that users of footswitch assemblies have different sized feet. Specifically, foot sizes vary in both length and width. Not only does the variation in foot sizes require that the footswitch assemblies accommodate the feet of all expected users, but the length of a user's foot also affects the amount of force needed to move the movable treadle pedal of the footswitch assembly with respect to its pivotable mounting. When a user is paired up with a footswitch assembly that has never been previously used by that user, the user must get used to the control “touch and feel” of the footswitch assembly to make the proper control inputs when operating a piece of equipment; for example, a piece of equipment used to perform surgical procedures.
If the footswitch assembly is being used to control a piece of equipment to perform a delicate medical procedure such as cataract or vitreoretinal surgery, the beginning of such a delicate surgical procedure is not the most propitious time for the vitreoretinal surgeon to practice becoming accustomed to the control touch and feel of a new footswitch assembly.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for a footswitch assembly with position memory which automatically adjusts to the size of an operator's foot and the desired control touch and feel of the user.